Feeding apparatus for rolling-mills.



No. 689,655. Patented Dec. 24, I901.

H..E. suEm'on.

v FEEDING APPARATUSFOB ROLLING MILLS (Application filed Feb. 1 6, 1900.)

(No Model) IIIIIIII/IIIIIIII/II/IIIY/IAA presented to the bite of therolls.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY E. SHELDON, OF LEEGHBURG, PENNSYLVANIA..

FEEDING APPARATUS FOR ROLLING-MILLS.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 689,655, dated. December24, 1901.

Application filed February 16 1900. 'derialNo. 5 ,422. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HARRY E. SHELDON, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and a resident of Leechburg, county of Armstrong, and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inFeeding Apparatus for Rolling-Mills, of which the following is aspecification.

In the accompanying drawings, which make part of this specification,Figure 1 is a front elevation of a pair of rolls provided with myimproved feed-roll. Fig. 2 is a detail inside elevation of one form ofdevice for supporting the journal of the feed-rollyand Fig. 3,a device,partly in section and partly in side elevation, of another form ofdevice for supporting the journal of the feed-roll.

In a previous patent, No. 499,259, dated June 13, 1893, granted to meand one John W. Kirkpatrick, for feeding and discharging apparatus forrolling-mills I have shown a feeding mechanism which accomplishes thesame result as the mechanism set forth in the present application. Themeans, however, for supporting the feed-roll in a yielding contact withthe main rolls are quite different from the means herein shown and whichconstitute the differences between such prior patent and the presentinvention. In said previous patent I explained at length thedifficulties experienced in feeding thin sheets of iron, steel, andcopper or other metals evenly and uniformly to the rolls. I thereinfully explained that these thin sheets were not of uniform gage, and,furthermore, being of a flexible character and unsupported except by thehands of the feeder they were liable to sag and drop out of line when Ifthe sheets entered the rolls inthis uneven alinement, the result waspinched or buckled sheets, necessarily resultingin loss and waste.

The object of the present invention, like that of my prior patent, is tofeed mechanically the sheets to the bite of the rolls and in themeantime support the sheet preferably entirely from side to side upon anidle feed-roller which is held flexibly in contact with the main rolland effectually prevents the sagging of the sheet. I accomplish thisresult by mounting an idle feed-roller in jour nal-boxes which arespring-supported, as hereinafter more specifically set out. p

In the drawings, 2 2 are the rolls, mounted in the usual housings 3 3,having the ordinary adjusting nuts and screws 4 4. The friction and feedroller 5 is mounted'in the boxes 6 6, each of which is supported by aplunger 7. As shown in Fig. 2, the plunger 7 is provided with a collar8, against which is seated a spring 10.

9 is a piston which works in a guiding-box 11, bolted to the housing 3.The lower end of the spring 10 bears against the upper end of theguiding-box 11. As shown in Fig. 3',- the spring 10 is entirely withinthe guidingbox 11, and its lower end rests against the bottom of theopening in said box. This is merely an alternating construction.

The operation of the mechanism is as fol lows: The sheet is fed to therolls between the upper roll 2 and the idle roller 5. By rea son of thefriction between the idle roller 5 and the upper roll 2 the idle rollerwill be rotated in a reverse direction to the upper roll 2 and will thusfeed forward the sheet to 4 the bite between the main rolls. The springswill be sufficiently yielding to accommodate themselves to differencesin gage between the "sheets, and the sheet will be supported evenly forits entire length, thus preventing drooping and sagging of the sheet andalso making it easier for the feeder to present the front edge of thesheet in a line parallel with the bite of the rolls.

My present form of apparatus is somewhat simpler than that shown in myhereinbefore recited patent and will not require repeated adjustment fordifierent gages of sheets.

The same advantage of dispensing with skilled labor in feeding isaccomplished by the'present device as is obtained by the mechanism setout in the hereinbefore recited patent.

My invention is applicable to all rolling 5 wherein thin flexiblesheets, whether hot or cold, are presented to the action of the rolls.Having described my invention, I claim- 1. The combination of a pair ofrolls mounted in suitable housings, an idle feed-roller mounted injournal-boxes, and spring-supports for said journal-boxes for forcingsaid feed-roller toward one of said pair of rolls.

2. The combination of apair of rolls mounted in suitable housings; anidle feed-roller mounted in front of said rolls; journal-boxes for saidfeed-roller plungers upon which said boxes are supported; guide-boxesfor said plungers and springs surrounding said plungers and forcing saidfeed-relies toward one 10 of the rolls.

Signed by me at Leechburg this 7th day of February, 1900.

HARRY E. SHELDON.

\Vitnesses:

B. R. PARR, R. D. CAMPBELL.

